More than 200 special predefined functions, arithmetic or transcendental, are
implemented, in addition to the usual arithmetic operations, which can be
used without paying attention to the type of the object. The source uses more
than 32000 lines of code, mainly in C.

PARI can be used as a library, but possesses also a powerful calculator mode
which gives instant access to all the types and functions. In this mode, one
can write programs with a simple syntax a little similar to C, but taking
also LISP-like constructs.

The main advantage of PARI is its speed. On a Unix platform, it is between 5 to
100 times faster than Maple or Mathematica, depending on the applications.
Also it is specially tailored for use by number theorists, hence contains a
large number of predefined number-theoretical functions not found in other
systems. It can of course profitably be used by other people as well. Finally,
it is free.

Currently, PARI is available for PC, Amiga, Macintosh, and most Unix platforms
by anonymous ftp at ftp://megrez.math.u-bordeaux.fr/pub/pari/ in
the directory pub/pari. The current version of PARI is 1.39 (Jan. 1995).